Hingham girls rise to occasion against AC

ARLINGTON -– As defending Division 1 girls state champion, Arlington Catholic is used to getting the best effort out of its opponents, each and every game.

Hingham will have to be able to do it twice in a row. After Defeating Arlington Catholic, 3-1, on Wednesday night at Ed Burns Arena, the Harborwomen (8-4-0) get a chance to sweep the home-and-home Saturday at Pilgrim Skating Arena in Hingham (6 p.m.).

“We really needed that win. I think our kids were up to the challenge after the first period. Taylor (Walsh in goal), and our two seniors came through in the end,” said Hingham coach Tom Findley. “We play them again on Saturday, and the score could be the same but in the opposite direction. Tonight we got some puck luck, and hopefully we can keep the momentum.”

After a scoreless first period, Alexandria Gong set a screen in front of Megan Messuri and tipped home a shot from Jane Freda, opening the scoring for Hingham with a power play goal with less than five minutes remaining in the middle frame.

Gong’s goal was netted on the third straight power play for Hingham, which swung momentum to the Harborwomen.

“Usually I play on the point, but coach wanted to switch it up a little bit, so he put me down on the wing,” said Gong. “I looked for the traffic in front of the net, and I just popped it in the net.”

The duo paired up for the game-winning goal three minutes later, when Gong sent Freda streaking down the wing on an outlet pass. Beating the defenseman wide, Freda drove to the net, slipping the puck through Messuri’s 5-hole.

Arlington Catholic (9-2-1) cut the lead in half with 18 seconds remaining in the middle period. Sophomore Adrianna Rossini broke in alone and roofed a back hander past Walsh.

The Cougars never were able to pull any closer as the Harborwomen sealed the victory with an empty-net goal by Victoria Messina, with 8.7 seconds remaining in the game.

“Getting this first win is a huge confidence booster for us,” said Freda. “They’re going to be hungrier than ever to get the next victory after coming off the loss tonight, so we need to get out there and really work hard. We know it is not going to be easy.

Cougars coach Maggie Taverna is looking forward to the chance to get back on the ice.

“They capitalized on their opportunities and we didn’t. The girls are upset about the loss, but it is something we can learn from,” said Taverna. “We had three penalties right in a row, and it changed the momentum of the game. Staying out of the box will be huge.”